Man suing after wife killed on ATV
SUN-TIMES MEDIA August 29, 2012 8:00PM
Updated: October 1, 2012 5:06PM
A man whose wife died in an all-terrain vehicle crash nearly a year ago near Crete filed a wrongful death lawsuit Tuesday against her father, who owned the vehicle, and another man who was driving it when it flipped.
Lauren A. Bussie, 23, of LaPorte, Ind., was a passenger on an ATV that overturned in the 2900 block of Water Tower Drive in Crete Township on Sept. 5, 2011, according to the Will County coroner’s office.
Bussie, mother of a young son, was thrown from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene, according to the coroner’s office and the lawsuit.
Her husband, Joel R. Bussie, claims the crash happened on his father-in-law’s property and that he owned the ATV that crashed, according to the lawsuit filed in Cook County Circuit Court.
The man driving, also a guest at the home, was not properly trained to operate the ATV and never should have been allowed to drive it, the lawsuit claims.
An autopsy determined Lauren Bussie died of multiple injuries from the ATV mishap, according to the coroner’s office.
The lawsuit claims negligence and wrongful death. It seeks at least $200,000 in damages.
